API Study on Detection and Recovery of Sunken Oil. API Study Objectives

Transcription

1 API Study on Detection and Recovery of Sunken Oil Jacqueline Michel, Research Planning, Inc. Mark Ploen, QualiTech Jim Elliott, T&T Marine Salvage, Inc. William Key API Study Objectives 1. ID current best practices and alternative technologies to more effectively identify and recover sunken oil*; 2. Establish a framework and priorities for ongoing R&D for the best potential alternative technologies * = accumulation of bulk oil on the bottom of a water body 1

2 Types of Sunken Oil Oils that are heavier than water and mostly sink when spilled Oils that are lighter than water and sink after mixing with sediment Oils that become heavier than water due to formation of oil-particle aggregates under turbulent conditions, which eventually settle on the bottom of the waterbody in quiescent areas 2

3 M/T Athos 1 API =

4 T/B Morris J. Berman API = 9.5 T/B Morris J. Berman API = 9.5 4

5 T/B Morris J. Berman API = 9.5 5

6 6

7 2012 Spring Submerged Oil Reassessment Poling Results at Morrow Lake Delta and Morrow Lake: Enbridge Pipeline Spill, Kalamazoo River 7

8 25 µm 50 µm (Ken Lee, Canada Department of Fisheries and Oceans) Recent Sunken Oil Summaries IMO 2012: Operational Guidelines on Sunken and Submerged Oil Assessment and Removal Techniques BMT 2009: Sunken and Submerged Oils Behaviour and Response AMSA 2006: Analyses of Survey, Modelling and Remote Sensing Techniques for Monitoring and Assessment of Environmental Impacts of Submerged Oil During Oil Spill Accidents Michel 2006: Assessment And Recovery Of Submerged Oil: Current State Analysis 8

9 Recent USCG R&D Studies 2009: Heavy Oil Detection (Prototypes) Final Report 2012: Heavy Oil Recovery OHMSETT Test Report 2013: Detection of Oil in Water Column: Sensor Design 2014: Detection of Oil in Water Column: Prototype Tests 2016: Mitigation of Oil in the Water Column: Concept Designs for: Microbubbles to push submerged oil to the water surface for traditional oil recovery methods Absorbent foam in nets : Containment of Oil Moving Along the Bottom: Prototype Design and Field Tests 38 Case Studies: 19 spills oil heavier than water and sank to the bottom or was suspended in the water column by strong currents 8 spills - oil initially floated but a significant amount sank after stranding on sand beaches (~2% sand = sinking) 6 spills - oil initially floated but a significant amount then sank or submerged without stranding onshore 2 spills - oil initially floated then became submerged and moved on the bottom with the currents, with little to no accumulation on the bottom 3 spills - oil sank after burning or intense heating 9

10 Response Needs for Sunken Oil Spills Detection on the bottom Containment Recovery of oil on the bottom Detection/tracking of mobile oil moving along the bottom Detecting Oil on the Bottom 1) Sonar systems 2) Underwater visualization systems 3) Diver observations 4) Sorbents 5) Laser fluorosensors 6) Visual observations by trained observers 7) Bottom sampling 8) Water-column sampling 10

11 Detecting Oil on the Bottom: Sonar Systems Lots of good capabilities: no water clarity limits, geo-referenced, good areal coverage rates, available technology Lots of limitations: detection limits for oil thickness, patch size; substrate effects; cannot detect buried oil; needs validation Growing experience in response community AND significant improvements in real-time data processing and calibration; post-processing time Sonar Systems 11

12 Detecting Oil on the Bottom: Visualization Systems 12

13 Detection of Oil on the Bottom: Towed and Stationary Sorbents Embarrassingly crude but simple Sorbent material attached to weights, dropped/dragged a short distance, then inspected for oil First use in 1984 at Mobiloil spill in Columbia River; latest in 2015 during a spill of clarified slurry oil in the Mississippi River 2004 Athos Delaware Rr 13

14 2008 Ohio River Spill Detection of Oil on the Bottom: Towed Sorbents 14

15 Snare Sentinels Snare sampler locations 15

16 Interpolated Snare Sampler Data 8-10 Dec 2004 Reds = >10% Yellows = 1-10% Light Green = <1% Interpolated Snare Sampler Data Dec 2004 Reds = >10% Yellows = 1-10% Light Green = <1% 16

17 Interpolated Snare Sampler Data Dec 2004 Reds = >10% Yellows = 1-10% Light Green = <1% 8-10 Dec Dec Dec 2004 Reds = >10% Yellows = 1-10% Light Green = <1% 17

18 Detection of Oil on the Bottom: Stationary Sorbents Detection of Oil on the Bottom: Visible Surveys from Surface/Air Water surface Wading-depth shovel pits (aka Snorkel SCAT) Poling Sticking 18

19 Lake Wabamun, Canada Detection of Oil on the Bottom: Underwater Laser Fluorescence 19

20 Detection of Oil on the Bottom: Water Column Sampling Fluorometry detects dissolved aromatic compounds in the overlying water Real-time mass spectrometer + concurrent acoustic navigation Camilli et al MPB. Detection of Oil on the Bottom: Diver Observations/Video Water visibility/depth/wx limits Need divers anyway for validation Low areal coverage/poor quantification Contaminated-water diving expertise limited 20

21 Contaminated Water Diving Hazard Evaluation Medical Monitoring Site Safety Plan Diving Equipment Training Back-up Team Decontamination Record Keeping 21

22 Sonar Systems Camera/ Video Acoustic Camera Diver Observations Towed Sorbents Stationary Sorbents Visual Observations Bottom Sampling Manual Shovel Pits Laser Fluorosensor Water Column Sampling Water Depth (ft) >1000 Water Visibility - > 30 ft ft - < 5 ft Availability Substrate Type - Sand - Silty sand - Mud Bottom Obstruction Oil Patch Size - < 0.1 ft ft 2 - > 1-10 ft 2 - > 10 ft 2 Oil Thickness Buried Oil Sensitive Habitat False Positives Coverage Rate Data Turnaround Detection of Oil on the Bottom Use multiple methods Refugio Incident Example MBES for bathymetry ROV video of potential targets Diver observations of potential targets 22

23 T/B Apex September ,870 bbl clarified slurry oil T/B Apex ,870 bbl clarified slurry oil API = -7.4 Viscosity = 160,000 cst 23

24 Detection: Side scan sonar and multibeam echo sounder Confirmation by: V-SORs Coring Diver obs 24

25 $ $ Side Scan Sonar, 06 SEP Meters Oil Delineation, 06 SEP SEP Meters Oil Delineation, 06 SEP 2015 Recovery of Oil on Bottom: Suction Dredge Diver-Directed Pumping and Vacuuming Mechanical Removal Sorbent/V-SORs Trawls and Nets Manual Removal Agitation/Refloat 25

26 Solids Removed: 2,260 yd 3 26

27 Recovery of Oil on Bottom 27

28 Recovery of Oil on Bottom: Decanting Systems Always ad hoc, under designed, lots of trial and error Recovery of Oil on Bottom: Decanting Systems Need guidelines and calculation tools Consider droplet size, flow rates, and oil behavior Advances in off-the-shelf systems Problems when used offshore unstable platforms 28

29 Sunken Oil R&D Needs Need new technologies for: detecting tracking containment modeling recovering decanting assessing But, they need to be emergency ready 29